Burning Cloth
by Musamura
Summary: In a world that relies on cloth to survive, life fibers have been integrated into the bodies of every human. Those who use these fibers to perform feats of great power are called 'Ninja'. One night, a boy with dreams of acceptance is encased in fire. There, the boy learns something. When trapped in a world of cloth, the best way out is to start a little Fire...
1. Sparks

Hello friends and welcome. I have recently been thinking quite a lot and I am currently somewhat unsatisfied with the original first chapter of this story. Seeing as it is still early on in the process I have decided to rewrite it in order to more closely portray what I had envisioned. It has taken me quite a bit of time to do this due to things coming up in my life at this point in time. Thus while I apologize for the amount of time this chapter has taken to be posted, I hope it will be worth it in the end. Without any further ado, the rewritten first chapter of Burning Cloth.

Disclaimer: I do not own either Naruto or Kill La Kill. They are property of their respective owners and I do not have any monetary gain from writing this. Now then, any lawyers can look here if they want a disclaimer for any of the chapters because this is the only place I will be writing one. Any who demand another shall be beaten with a giant rubber chicken made of many smaller rubber chickens.

"Normal Talking"

'Normal Thinking'

**"Technique/Jutsu or Summon Beast/Bijuu Talking"**

-Time/Setting Skip/Change-

=Chapter Start + name /End=

=Sparks=

Naruto Uzumaki was a simple boy. He wanted companionship and attention just like every other boy his age. However, unlike most boys his age, he never received what he wanted. Left alone on the streets at the tender age of 5, he was hated by most and ignored by the rest. He was lonely and desperate for any form of attention. There was but one light in his life, fire. Naruto had always been entranced by fire, its beauty ensnaring him. He could just stare at a torch or a lantern until the flame eventually went out, uncaring of the world around him. He did not know why he was so fascinated by the flickering of a flame, but he thought that it may be because he wanted to be like the fire, bright and most importantly _noticeable_. Nobody could ignore a flame like they ignored him, and hatred had no effect on it. But Naruto did not question his awe towards fire often, as it was the only thing that brought him some form of happiness in the world. And so even on this most special day, October the tenth, Naruto's sixth birthday, he still sat simply in his room gazing at the flickering of the candle next to his bedside, entranced. He sat there for hours, with his blond hair short and spiked, wearing his normal white shirt with a spiral on the front and his blue shorts. His blue eyes shined with the reflection of the flame and the flickers of the candlelight made the three whisker-like marks on his cheeks stand out. He sat there and stared at the flickering of the flame and the light smoke that rose from it, until he was broken from his trance by a crash from his front door.

-With the crash came a spark-

Kaizou Ramui was a simple man. He desired companionship, status and happiness, just like every other man. Kaizou, unlike most men, had these things before, but they were all taken from him, leaving him an empty husk of a man with little left to live for. He once had a light in his life, his wife Rika. She had given him everything he had ever wanted just by being with him. He had loved her with all his heart and soul, as she had him. They had met while he was returning from a mission. She a simple merchant's daughter and he a simple newly promoted chunin. They had caught each other's eyes and both would swear it was love at first sight. They started dating and soon they were engaged. They married soon after with the blessings of the Hokage, and were trying for a child. Then it was all over, all ended by a simple word. Kyuubi. When the beast attacked it wrought destruction like nothing had before it. He had thrown his largest technique, a massive dragon of fire, towards the beast. It shrugged the attack off as if it was nothing, but its attention soon turned to him. To this day he swore the beast smirked at him, before launching a fireball three times as large as his dragon back at him. Kaizou stood there, frozen in fear. As the fireball neared, he turned away, not wanting to see his impending doom. He felt the heat on his back and a rush of wind, then nothing. Looking up, he saw that the attack had missed him, he felt a rush of relief. Until he saw where the fireball was going to land. He and his wife's newly acquired house.

With a feeling of dread he ran towards the home as fast as he could. Most civilians had been evacuated, however his wife was pregnant and could not safely make the trip to the safehouse under the Hokage monument. As he ran, he thought about all of his life, and his love for his wife and soon to be born child. This fueled him to run faster than he ever had before, faster than most jounin would ever be able to run.

It was not enough.

A massive explosion lit up the night and Kaizou's eyes widened in horror. Just as he arrived at his home, it was consumed by flame. He rushed inside, desperately hoping against all hope that his beloved wife was still alive inside.

She was.

He could tell because of the screams.

He sat and watched in shocked horror as he saw his wife, covered by flames, screaming in agony and begging for his return. It was during this begging that his wife caught sight of him. She looked at him, and smiled. She opened her mouth as if to call him, but the words never left her mouth.

The large piece of wood falling from the ceiling made sure of that.

Kaizou watched on, frozen in fear and horror as he watched as the last of the life was burned away from his beloved's eyes. He watched as her flesh burned away and her mouth was left gaping open in an silent scream as she took her last breath, a breath of smoke and embers. He couldn't move, he couldn't even breath. He stood and stared in disbelief, even as a larger piece of his newly bought home, a larger piece of his dream, still in flame, fell towards his head. It was only his years of ninja training that saved him. His instincts took over and he quickly dodged the falling debris, which now blocked his wife's corpse from view. His mind blank his body took over and he quickly jumped out of his crumbling future and out into the night. The last thing he remembers before fainting from shock is the giant red eyes of the Kyuubi, a look of mocking and amusement gleaming in them.

When Kaizou woke once again the beast was gone, sealed into a young boy. He stared blankly at the child as the Sandaime Hokage, an old man named Sarutobi Hiruzen, announced that the child was their savior and that he should be regarded as a hero. Deep inside him, Kaizou agreed with the old man. He knew, even if only subconsciously, that the boy was not the demon.

But human nature does not work that way.

We all need someone to blame, even when no-one is at fault.

When Kaizou looked at the young boy, all he saw was red eyes, gleaming in amusement.

It was for this reason that he stood outside the apartment, short brown hair covered in a bandana, a face mask covering the healed burns on his lower face. His chunin vest worn proudly on his chest, his headband around his waist, between his blue shirt and dark green pants.

It was he that broke down the door.

-From the spark comes a flicker-

Naruto panicked as he tried to hide underneath his bed, but the three ninja reached his room before he could even manage to get near it. Naruto screamed as he was lifted up and blindfolded. He tried to call out for the help that he knew would not come, but a cloth was shoved into his mouth before he even got the chance. Tears ran from his covered eyes and muffled sounds from his gagged mouth as the three men began to carry him outside. As they jumped on the rooftops, Naruto could not keep track of how far they traveled, but when they stopped all he could hear the whispers of his kidnappers. This went on for a few moments, then he heard a spark. The smell of smoke filled the air.

-From the flicker comes a flame-

Yaruu Uchiha was a simple woman. She wanted happiness, security and love just like most others did. She was a woman particularly dedicated to her clan. She desired only what was best for her clan. Her clan had been becoming more and more unhappy since the Kyuubi attack. Many blamed the Uchiha due to the rumors that the beast could be controlled by a Sharingan. Because of this, her clan was being even more separated from the village than it had been before. This angered many of the Uchiha, and there was talk of revolution. Yaruu may be loyal to her clan, but she is not blind. She knows that the Uchiha cannot take on the entire village and live. So she knew she had to save her clan from the destruction that lay at the end of the road they currently walked.

That is where the boy came in.

She had nothing against him, as she was a smart woman and knew how sealing worked. Thus she was sorry that the boys life had to end because of her, but she knew it was for the good of her clan that an Uchiha was the one to kill the boy. If the villagers saw that an Uchiha rid them of the Kyuubi, then the rumors of the Uchiha causing the attack would fade out, and the Uchiha could be re-integrated into the village. She knew for a fact that not many shinobi hated the boy, because most understood the workings of basic sealing scrolls well enough, but she also knew none were willing to take the hatred of many of the civilians who were filled with the grief of lost family and did not understand the way sealing worked. If they were to help the boy that hatred would apply to them too, so they just stood back and tried to ignore the boy.

The shinobi were not the ones the Uchiha needed to win over, so this was the best way to prevent the future destruction of her clan.

She didn't hate the boy, but it was for the greater good of her clan. She hoped the boy would forgive her in the afterlife.

It was she that lit the fire.

-From the flame comes destruction-

As the smell of smoke became stronger and the sounds of crackling flames increased, Naruto could not help but be somewhat calmed.

Until his blindfold was removed.

In front of him was a massive bonfire, with wood piled taller than he himself was and flames that seemed to lick at the stars. It was both the most horrifying and the most beautiful thing that Naruto ever seen. He could feel the heat of it on his face and the light from it made the night look like the day.

His obsession with fire is the reason he did not scream. Not even as he was thrown towards the fire.

Not even as the flames engulfed him.

-From destruction comes death-

Toki Hida was a simple old man. He wanted good fortune for his family and for his daughters to be happy for the rest of their lives. That is why he is ashamed of his past actions. He had gotten in deep with the wrong people. His debt to them was always growing, and they had said if he did not pay, then they would start 'collecting' in other ways, specifically from his daughters. He loved his daughters and late wife more than anything, so when his wife passed away seven years ago, all he was left with was his retired life and his precious daughters. He could die happy knowing they were happy, and would do anything to keep them happy. So when the people he owed told him of an alternate way to pay off his debt, he took it without question.

Kill the 'Kyuubi brat' as they called him, and your debt is cleared.

It was a simple way, but also a terrible way. But he would do anything for his daughters, so he agreed to do it. He enlisted the help of two willing ninja and used his few remaining favors to learn the boy's address and to ensure that his normal ANBU guard was kept busy with a fire in the market district.

He didn't hate the boy, but for his daughters he would do anything.

It was he who threw the boy into the flames.

-From the death comes the end -

As the boy entered the flames, Kaizou, Yaruu and Toki looked on with varied expressions. Kaizou looked on with sadness and longing, he could swear he could see his late wife within the flames, looking at him sadly, disapproving of his actions. He was the first to leave. He went to his home, glad he had finally reached his goal, but sad and guilty as he realized just what he had done. He finally settled on a blank feeling as he set up the rope. 'I will join you soon, love.' Kaizou thought as he put the rope around his neck.

Yaruu stood with a grim look, but one of accomplishment. She knew that her clan would now be saved. Within the flames she saw the revival of the Uchiha clan back to its former status. She was the second to leave. She went to tell the village of her achievement. She only got to tell one person of her achievement, as she ran into Itachi Uchiha on the way home. She didn't even see him move when he charged her and she was taken to the Torture and Interrogation division. She managed to withhold the information of the location of the bonfire they had thrown the boy into until the morning, which she knew would be enough time for the flames to do their job. She was executed soon after. The village never found out about her actions, and the Uchiha grew even more bitter over the loss of one of their own to the village once again. The rebellion was still on.

Toki never left the clearing. As he looked into the flames, he had a look of sorrow and peace on his face. He hoped that the boy could forgive him, but his daughters came before a stranger. In the flames he saw his daughters living happy lives, growing old and having loving families. He also saw his late wife calling him to her. As he laid down before the fire, he knew that his family was safe and his goal in life complete. He closed his eyes feeling the warmth of the fire on him. His eyes never re-opened.

-From the end comes a new beginning-

The flames burned through the night, but despite there being a boy within there were never any screams. Naruto had expected pain from the flames, but all he felt was a soothing sense of comfort and peace despite the inferno raging around him. The bonfire raged on through the night, and in the morning all that remained was a smoldering pile of ashes and charcoal. As the sun rose above the horizon many figures converged on the bonfire's location.

Their silhouettes stood in silence as shock and rage filled their beings at the sight of the one thing they had been hoping to prevent. The silhouette with a large, pyramid shaped hat stepped forward and looked into the charcoal and embers that remained of what had once been a raging bonfire. Upon searching the remains of the blaze, he saw something that caused him to gasp in shock. A small hand sticking out from the embers. It was thoroughly burned, the flesh being charred and the skin nonexistent. On the back of the hand was a strange gem, one that was primarily orange but flickered with red and yellow as though it were a living flame. As the figure rushed towards the hand, he saw something that brought him some joy, but greater dread.

The hand twitched.

=End of Chapter=

And that, friends, was the new first chapter of Burning Cloth. I do hope you all enjoyed it. I personally think it is better than the first one, but I would like to hear from you all. What did you like, what did you hate, what do you think will happen next, let me know in the reviews! I very much so enjoyed writing this, and will continue to write it in the future. And with that I bid you all goodbye.

Until the next moonlit night,

Musamura


	2. Beauty

Hello once again after so long. I am here to confirm that I am indeed not dead. It has been a long and hard year for me but I am have resolved to continue writing once again. I changed a small piece at the end of the first chapter again, as it has been a year and it didn't quite fit with the way I wanted it to flow, but I only changed the last few paragraphs, nothing major. I don't have much else to say so I may as well just get straight into the story.

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**"Inhuman Speech/Technique name"**

_**'Inhuman Thinking'**_

=Chapter Start=

The world was black, covered in a darkness that young Naruto had never before experienced. Darker than the night, darker than sleep, everything was coated in a layer of blackness that seemed to consume everything that once was and everything that ever would be. For an eternity the boy looked into the abyss and was greeted with hungry eyes without substance and a gaping maw without form, a shroud that consumed the very concept of light covering all of existence. Just when the boy was about to give in to this darkness and lose himself, he saw something. Movement. Not of a corporeal kind but more akin to the waves of heat given off on a hot day. There was only dark and yet somehow it seemed to move in a way so natural and yet otherworldly, as if it should not exist but was always meant to be.

The boy watched these flickers for another eternity, entranced by their otherworldly presence, taking in every detail of their flowing shapes, shimmering blackness and flickering colors._ 'Colors'_ The young boy thought, and as such they came into being. Such magnificent shades flowed forth from the shimmering void in magnificent bursts and streams, as if coming in existence over the course millennia in, yet in an instant. Such natural oranges and reds swirled in their ever-present glory while the existence of greens and blues gave the show of light and heat a strange and yet wonderful feeling of unknowing.

Naruto watched in awe as his black world was consumed by colors unimaginable and yet corporeal. The cold hunger of an empty life was suddenly filled with the warm embrace of beauty and desire. A new hunger much more pure was present, born of the desire for beauty and passion for existence. It was a raging swirl of chaos and yet also more peaceful than anything the tortured young boy had experienced in his short lifetime. As the beautiful world consumed him, Naruto for the first time in his life gave a small, true smile.

A great blackness opened in the swirl of warmth. A massive slit in his new paradise that seemed as though it was the pupil of the void that he had escaped. At first the boy was afraid, thinking that the abyss that once was would return again. But upon looking closer the boy realized that this was not the utter darkness that once was, this darkness had substance and presence. It was dark but not void, unseen but undeniably existing. He took in the blackness with a new appreciation and accepted it into his world, for it was a part of this beautiful existence that was all his own.

As he accepted the dark and yet beautiful presence Naruto felt a new warmth growing within him. As his previously unseen body was remade from what seemed to be silken threads of the color which consumed his world, he felt complete in ways that none would ever again experience. As his body was embraced by the swirl of colors he became whole, feeling as though this perfect world had accepted him and that he had become one with it. He laid there, content to merely bask in the glow of the amazing realm in which he found himself. But he could feel that this was not his purpose, that this world needed him elsewhere.

He felt a strange pull on his being as if this flawless world was pulling him to act, to commit to its survival, its end and its creation. As he accepted the pull and felt himself being dragged outside the beautiful painting in which he awoke, he felt it join him and meld itself with his very being. As he took his last glances he put the sight to which he had been treated eternally within his memory. A perfect and peaceful world of color and warmth. A world of beauty.

A World On Fire

-A man with foolish hope-

Sarutobi Hiruzen was getting old. He was far past his days of glory, stories, passion and even love. For some time the man had even thought himself past his time of regret, of sadness, of hate. But to think that was foolish. His tale may be near its end but the tragedy that is life in this world of war and pain is only just beginning. His age should have helped him know that, the experience prepared him for all of that which could occur in the twisted realm called reality.

It did not

The old man wore a simple red robe that went down past his feet, tied with a white sash around his waist. Just below his neck was a wide white scarf that covered his shoulders and the top of his chest. Over these was a simple white overcoat, left open in the center and going down to his knees in length. His clothing was completed by a large pyramid like red hat with white around its rim. On the corner which fell directly above his face displayed a white triangular section with the kanji for fire displayed proudly in the same red as the rest of the hat. On the right diagonal edge of the pyramid shaped hat were two small metallic tubes.

Coming down from within the hat was white cloth which covered all sides of the man's head other than his face. It was the face of a man who was showing his age, with imperfections and wrinkles obvious upon his visage. The only hair visible was a grey goatee upon his chin. And yet despite his worn appearance, he still held an aura of authority and power. An aura that was now dampened with regret.

"How did it ever come to this" Hiruzen muttered to himself. He received no answer to his question, for there were none present who could answer him. There were others in the room, figures in porcelain animal masks wearing black bodysuits with light purple armor covering their chests, forearms and shins, but none of them spoke, for they knew there was no single answer that could be given to the tired old man's question. The room in which they stood was white, with a single door leading into a hallway and a single window opposite the door. Beside the window sat a bed . Large amounts of medical equipment lined the walls and the place smelled strongly of disinfectant. A hospital, a place of hope, healing and safety and yet the last place that anyone in the world would wish to find themselves

There were four of the masked figures, ANBU as they are called, and together with the old man they made up all but one of the figures present in the room. Though the last could only barely be considered a figure. Upon the bed lay a child, or what used to be one. Only those with knowledge of the situation could tell you who it was. The child's body burned beyond recognition, all hair turned to ash and the flesh charred to a sickening crisp. There were only two things that separated this figure from just another life claimed in a fire. The first being the two strange gems upon the backs of what remained of the figures hands, one on the right and another on the left. The color was primarily orange, but with yellows and reds that seemed to flicker as though made of flame. The other thing that made it different?

It was still alive

-Earlier that day, site of the fire-

Hiruzen immediately began furiously digging at the charcoal surrounding the hand. The ANBU, seeing what the man was doing, immediately began helping him to remove the figure from the burned wood. After a minute of digging, they succeeded in removed the body and saw that the rest of the boy's figure was no better off than his hands. Hiruzen dropped his head slightly and nearly began to mourn the loss when he felt the extremely light beating of the child's heart.

"ANBU, to the hospital immediately! The boy is still alive!" Shouted Hiruzen as he took off into the trees surrounding the clearing in which they had found the fire, the ANBU following closely behind him. Thinking could wait for later, the only thing important to Hiruzen in that moment was insuring the boy's survival.

-Current time-

It had been several hours since then. The sun was now high in the sky, yet despite the light flowing through the window the room held an air of darkness that seemed to spite the beauty of the world outside. The village's best medic ninja and doctors had already come and gone, having done everything that they could possibly do, but the boy's condition was just too critical for them to do much. Anyone else would have been long dead in his position, so they had no experience dealing with such extensive damage. Now all that was left was to wait and hope that the boy pulled through.

_'I'm sorry Minato, I have failed you once more.' _thought Hiruzen. He grew warm at the thought of his late successor. _'I do not deserve the warmth your memory gives me.'_ He thought and tried to rid himself of the feeling, yet he found he couldn't. In fact it only continued to grow, becoming hotter and hotter, to the point where he began lightly sweating. He realized suddenly that this was no internal feeling and swiftly looked around to determine the source. His eyes widened upon looking upon the figure of the boy that lay in the bed.

Flowing from the gems on his hands were flames of every color. They surrounded the boy without touching his skin, cloaking him in a wreath of color and heat. The bed the boy lay upon caught aflame and with unnatural swiftness burned into nothing but ash, the flames produced adding to the growing swirl around the now floating form, the gems still releasing more and more flames.

"Be careful!" Hiruzen shouted "Those flames are chakra based, I don't know what is going on but be ready to defend yourselves!" As the ANBU prepared for the worst, some even forming handsigns in preparation, they all witnessed something they had never before heard of. The chakra in that created the flames seemed to thin, still keeping its flaming form. The chakra kept thinning until it formed what seemed to be strings composed of chakra that still somehow made up the flames surrounding the boy.

They all watched in horror and amazement as the boy's body itself began to dissolve into similar strings, further adding to the inferno. The process was slow at first but it sped rapidly until there was nothing but the boys bones. Even those began to unravel themselves into strings that all merged into the now raging flame. All that remained within the fires were the two gems which had been on the back of the boy's hands.

The fire remained for several minutes. The ANBU still tense and Hiruzen was confused, saddened and enraged by the apparent death of the boy that he saw as a grandson. He raised his hand, about to order the ANBU to unleash their attacks, a form of revenge against whatever had taken the boy, when the string-composed flames began to rush in on themselves toward the gems that remained floating in the center. They began to form around them, shifting in color from the previous flurry to a cloud of whites, reds and a strange color like that of human skin. These 'flame strings' began to become more solidified around the gems, forming something to contain their bottom halves.

A pair of hands

The flame strings continued from there, forming swiftly into the basic form of arms, a chest, a head. As the rest of the body began to take form, the area of the hands that originally formed began to lose its string like composition and become skin, forming fully into a hand. This process followed the path of the first strings. Once the basic form of a young child's body had formed from the strings and the entirety of the arms had become flesh, a third wave began where the rest of the strings began forming substance as well, but seeming more targeted then either of the previous waves. These flames began to form the beginnings of what seemed to be clothing. They merged together until the entirety of the inferno that had once surrounded the boy was used in the process.

As the last of the strings solidified, Hiruzen and the ANBU gazed in shock at what they saw. In front of them was the same young boy, who had been burned away not a day earlier, in perfect health. The gems remained on the backs of his hands, and the clothing had fully formed. The boy was now wearing a bright, flame red tee shirt with orange spread throughout that gave the shirt the image of being aflame. Around the shoulders of the shirt were two triangular pieces of cloth, held upright by some unknown force in a way such as that one point was six inches above the boy's shoulder, pointing away from his body, while the other two points were level about three inches below the boys shoulders. The triangular pieces had orange rims with deep red within it. In the center of each piece was a large black slit, like the pupil of a cat. These two pieces of cloth looked oddly like eyes, seeming to move from time to time. The boy also now had cargo pants that were a burnt orange color with white flame like designs around the bottom. He was not wearing any shoes, and still appeared to be unconscious.

Hiruzen and the ANBU stood in shock for a moment, unable to believe the events which they had witnessed. Snapping out of his stupor, Hiruzen immediately called out to the hospital staff for another bed. "ANBU, get me a Hyuuga immediately, I need to know what happened!" Hiruzen shouted. The ANBU nodded immediately, one of the disappearing to complete the order.

Hiruzen himself continued to stare at the boy, unable to think of an explanation for what he had witnessed.

-The following day-

Naruto slowly sat up in bed. He blearily began to look around, wondering where he was. He was aware of what had happened to him, and his first guess as to his location was correct. He was in the hospital. The boy turned towards his window and further confirmed his suspicions, seeing the roofs that lie next to the hospital once again. He had been here many times in his life, and the fluttering of drying clothing and sheets had always been beautiful to him. Strangely, now the boy could not see the beauty that he once looked forward to. _'Why don't they look as pretty as they used to?'_ thought the boy as he continued to stare at the cloth fluttering in the wind.

_'Did something change?'_ Naruto thought. As he pondered this he continued focusing his attention on the fluttering that he once found so beautiful. As he wondered, he slowly began to once again see the beauty that he saw before. The warm, homely glow of the cloth. The silent flickering in the wind that entranced him. The flow of air around them. The shine of heat. Naruto stared in peace that the cloth brought him once more, and smiled lightly as the last pieces of the beauty that had escaped him returned once again, making him remember fully why he sometimes liked to sit on the roofs and just watch the cloth flutter. As time continued, the enjoyment that the scene brought him slowly faded until it no longer existed. He frowned slightly and switched his view to another line of close on the roof next to the previous one. It took significantly less time to begin seeing the beauty of the scene this time, and Naruto began to smile once more as he took in the beauty of the new cloth.

When Hiruzen walked into the hospital room, he was greeted with the sight of a smiling Naruto.

And several lines of clothing on the nearby roofs covered in flames.

=End of Chapter=

Well, as I said before, I am back to writing now. I will write another chapter for my other story soon as well, so for those of you who care you can look forward to that. I will not be having any particular schedule as I am commonly busy with work and other engagements, but I will try to upload a chapter for each story every one to three weeks. Thank you for reading, be sure to tell me what you think, I read everything you guys send me.

Until the next moonlit night,

Musamura


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